Word of mouth, social proof, and popularity have always been a key to success in business. Today, that involves online reviews. And while online reviews are vital to any business, they are especially important in the local arena.
Numerous studies have proven that customer reviews can mean the difference between success and failure for your business. For example: Did you know that positive comments from customers produce an average increase in sales of 18%? Or that consumers are likely to spend 31% more because of positive reviews?
On the other hand, all it takes is just 1 negative review to convince 22% of your consumers not to buy your product or service. Even worse, with four or more bad comments, you stand to lose 70% of your potential customers.
Online Reviews are Nothing to Take Lightly.
Sometimes just getting those customer reviews can be challenging. But where do I start? What if my business isn’t primarily online? What if my business is B2B? These are all great questions! That’s why we’ve put together a few tips to help you boost your social proof with more positive online reviews.
Tip 1: Follow Up With Your Recent Customers
Block off an hour every week to hop on the phone and call your recent customers. Ask them how they feel about your services or how they’re enjoying your product. This will not only show that you care about the quality of your work, but that you care about THEM. Before getting off the phone, ask if they’d be comfortable with you sending them an email containing instructions on leaving you a Google review.
Tip 2: Use Social Media to Direct Customers to Leave an Online Review
Is your business on Facebook? If so, head over to your business page and make a post asking your followers what they thought of your product or service. By directing them to your native Facebook reviews tab, your followers will be able to easily leave you a review.
Tip 3: Utilize Online Review Services
If you didn’t already know, there are services out there that can manage your online reviews for you. The biggest hurdle most businesses face in accumulating reviews is that happy customers forget – or don’t even think – to write them in the first place.
Brew City Marketing has a PROVEN PROCESS that asks and reminds your customers for feedback. It guides them through creating a review and gives you a chance to reach dissatisfied customers before they leave a negative rating.
How do we know this process works? Because we do it for our own business. Since launching our review system with our clients, we have been blown away by the results. Many of our customer segments have had incredible success in increasing their number of reviews:
- Auto Body: 143% increase
- Roofing: 277% increase
- Landscaping: 137% increase
- Consulting: 197% increase
This proven process is called ReviewFlow. Want more information on how it works and why your business needs to be attracting positive reviews? Head over to our ReviewFlow page.
We can’t stress it enough. Positive reviews are the ultimate stamp of customer approval and may be the most effective marketing strategy you can use for your business.
Are you ready to take your business to the next level? We genuinely enjoy helping build your business. Call us today at 414-208-0700 or fill out our contact form! Our office is conveniently located in Milwaukee, near Wauwatosa, just a few blocks south of Mount Mary College.
